Andy Pettitte

It was only a couple weeks ago when many experts had the New York Yankees as a lock to make it to the World Series and defend their title. Unfortunately, for the Yankee faithful, no one told the Texas Rangers.

The Rangers have certainly not been intimidated by the Yankees bloated payroll and 27 World Series titles. They haven't been phased by their previous nine losses in ten postseason games to the Yankees before this season. The 2010 Texas Rangers are not your daddy's Texas Rangers.

Tonight is the night that you've all been waiting for...

Unless you're a Yankees fan.

Tonight will be a game to remember, in a battle between two of the greatest postseason pitchers in the history of the game.

Cliff Lee vs. Andy Pettitte.

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How many Major League Baseball pitchers can claim they own the New York Yankees?

Tonight, in Game 3 of the ALDS, the Bronx Bombers face crafty lefty Cliff Lee, who for the most part has shut them down over the last two seasons.

With the confidence that Andy Pettitte’s many successful postseason appearances afford, manager Joe Girardi is scheduled to start his wily southpaw in a bounce-back game.

Before the pennant races concluded, many people thought, and wrote, that the Yankees did not want to win the American League East because they did not want to to possibly face Cliff Lee twice in a five game series.

Once again, be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.

And the Yankees now have it.

They are in the same situation as the 2010 AL East champion Tampa Bay Rays were: Since they split the first two games in Arlington, they are now in a five game series against the Rangers.

The American League Championship Series moves to the Bronx tonight as the Yankees and Rangers are locked up at one game apiece. The pitching matchup of Andy Pettitte and Cliff Lee should be a great one.

However, there may be a matchup that is just as important.

Yankees starter Andy Pettitte must keep the Texas base runners from running wild. The Rangers got the Yankees in an early hole in Game 2 after stealing three bases, including a steal of home in the first inning.

There may be nothing in professional sports that quite measures up to starting the final game of a seven-game playoff series in Major League Baseball. It can either mean going home, moving on, or winning it all.

Before the advent of the expanded playoff system in 1969, only two teams were eligible in MLB, the pennant winners of the American and National Leagues. For 66 seasons this was the accepted format, and the Fall Classic brought us many great memories from that period of time.

Two seasons ago, the Yankees missed the playoffs for the first—and last—time this decade. They went into the offseason with a sense of urgency—a sense that holds none of the connoted nerves for Yankees fans, considering they always have the financial power to get the job done.

And they did.

The Yankees signed three of the top free agents to long-term deals. CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira were all Yankees. They would go on to win the World Series.

It's not going to be a sweep for the Yankees. The Rangers got their first postseason victory at home in their nearly 50 seasons with a 7-2 blowout win over the Yankees.

After a bullpen collapse Friday night, the Rangers were able to hold on to their lead. The Rangers' bullpen was the complete opposite of what it was in their loss to New York on Friday. The Yankees were only able to obtain one hit in a little over three innings against the Rangers' bullpen.

Normally, a visiting team would feel pretty confident bringing a best-of-seven series back home tied 1-1.  They would have beaten one of the opponent's best pitchers, and they would have the chance to wrap up the series at home with all of their fans behind them.

The New York Yankees need a fourth starter for the ALCS. But the one they named was wrong. It should not have been A.J. Burnett, but rather Ivan Nova.

Nova, whom the Yankees refused to trade, was a major reason that they didn't get Cliff Lee from the Mariners midseason. He has since justified their retaining him. Except for one very bad start that skewed his respectable 4.50 ERA upward, he has been quite a serviceable pitcher both as a starter and a reliever. And he's only 23, in his first season.